Bamboozled

 

‘Lothario’ Jack Wisetail is looking for a different kind of female to romance and one afternoon while playing pool with his cousin, he thinks he finds her.  Emily Woodward stumbles into his local bar for a rest stop on her road trip and instantly attracts Jack’s attention.  He turns on the charm and successfully woos the feisty redhead.  

 

Through Jack, Emily learns that she’s a North American Werewolf, which explains her blackouts and waking up to traumatic murder scenes.  Since Jack is part European Werewolf and part Lokoti Werewolf, he understands Emily’s bloodlust.  He offers to help her try to control her dangerous nature.  However, when he brings her home to meet his family, both Emily and Jack are in for a surprise that leaves him bamboozled…

Coming June 2025

The good looking boy who looked like he could be part Native Alaskan, waved his hand towards the vacant seat.

 

(Excerpt Alma Chapter 1)

 

            After I signed in, I was told which classes I would be in.  I was given a map to download onto my phone of the school building, with my class time table.  I was relieved to see on my schedule that I was placed into the Home Science and Music classes that I nominated as my electives.

            The school bell sounded and hurriedly I left the office.  I walked down the now empty corridor looking for Room 306 for my first class of the day which was English.  To be honest, I didn’t find the school map that helpful.  I kept losing my place by having to check the ‘key’ at the bottom, to work out what all the different colours meant.

            Merde! I'm going to be late for my first class! Now I’m really going to stand out!

            At last, I found Room 306 after walking up one staircase and down another corridor.  Nervously, I approached the closed door where I knocked once before slowly opening it.

            The English teacher was a red-headed woman, who was standing up the front of the class.  She was writing on an electronic board with a sensor pen before she paused to look on my lateness, unimpressed.

            “I’m – I’m new,” I tried to explain.

            I heard some snickering from the students who were all staring at me.  Most of them eyed me analytically and looked unimpressed with what they saw.  Their expressions mirrored the look on my teacher's face.

            “You’re new?” the teacher raised her eyebrows. “That would explain why I’ve never seen you before.”

            There was more snickering as the whole class stared at my appearance.  I stood there, like I was stuck in the mud, wondering if I was supposed to say anything else? The teacher didn’t ask for my name nor did she offer hers.

            “Well, unless you want to stand there and help me teach, you can find a seat," she said at last.

            My face burned in embarrassment as I looked for a place to sit down and hide, but there were only two places.  Beside the vacant seats, sat fashionably dressed boys or girls who looked like they were secretly hoping I wouldn’t sit beside them. But if they didn’t want me to, where else am I supposed to sit?  I’m going to have to sit in one of those seats whether they like it or not.

            I moved towards a seat beside a boy who was wearing a sports team jacket, when abruptly he put his foot on the chair to stop me from sitting down.

            Mon Dieu!  This day was worse than I could have imagined!  Not only does nobody like me, but they already hate me!  I froze in terror as I didn't know what to do, when out of the blue I heard this…

            SMACK!

            …a good looking boy who was sitting behind the mean boy who'd stopped me from sitting down, had just slapped him on the back of his head!

            “Don’t be a dickhead, Johnson! Move your frickin’ big foot!” he snapped.

            The other kids who'd witnessed this, burst out laughing, whereas I wished I could turn invisible.

            The good looking boy was sitting next to a broad-shouldered girl with a very pretty face.  But her physique was what made you notice about her first, as she was one of the strongest looking girls I'd ever seen.  Truly, she looked like she could have been a weightlifter!  She had bright blue eyes and long, wavy, dark blonde hair, and was looking at me with a curious expression.

            She was sitting next to another boy, who was the exact opposite to her as he was very thin.  He had faded blue eyes and his pallor was so unnaturally white, his lips were almost blue.  To say he looked sickly would have been an understatement. 

            The good looking boy who looked like he could be part Native Alaskan, waved his hand towards the vacant seat. 

            Immediately, I sat down and busied myself by taking out my laptop.  I tried to ignore the death stare by the sports jacket guy named Johnson.  He glared at me then the good looking boy and back to me. 

            Mon Dieu!  That's it, tomorrow I’m not coming back to this school!  I’m never going to come to this school again!

            However, I noticed the good looking boy didn't bother with Johnson's threatening looks, he was too busy staring at me.  And he wasn’t just staring, but he looked completely transfixed.  Then I noticed so too were the blonde girl as well as the pale guy.

            The good looking guy had scruffy, dark brown hair which sat just below his ears and dark brown eyes.  Although he and the girl were sitting down, I could tell they were both tall.  Their pale, thin friend wasn’t as tall, or anywhere as built-up as the other two.

            These three weren’t dressed as trendily as their classmates and seemed to have their own style.  The good looking guy was wearing blue jeans, a grey t-shirt and a brown suede jacket.  The girl was wearing brown jeans, a pale blue shirt and a black suede jacket.  The pale guy was wearing black jeans, a white shirt and a black, pin-striped suit jacket.

            What’s more, it wasn’t just the good looking guy that was staring, but it was all three.  Whereas the first guy’s mouth hung open, the girl and the pale guy looked very curious.  Then, the two smiled in a friendly way, but the first guy continued to stare.  When the girl noticed her friend’s mouth was hanging open, she whacked him on the arm to make him snap out of it.

            “What?” he looked back in surprise. “Oh yeah.”

            He straightened, closed his mouth and gave me a goofy grin. 

            I liked his smile, it told me that he was a nice person.

 

*****

I came from a climate where a ‘hot day’ could reach forty-five degrees Celsius; to a climate which could drop to minus forty-five degrees Celsius.

 

(Excerpt Alma Chapter 1)

 

9th September 2380 – Nine Months Previously

 

            The hover-car landed with a gentle thud on the side of the road out the front of Alma High School and powered down. 

            Our second-hand hover-car wasn’t as shiny and new as the other models that we passed on the streets, or even those that were parked in the student car park.  Our vehicle also made a loud humming noise coupled with a slight rattle when we were zipping from A to B whereas the newer models moved almost soundlessly.  These differences only aided my self-conscious tendencies which were nerve-wracking when starting at a new school.  

            Mama turned off the ignition and turned to give me a brave smile. 

            She ordered, “Don’t be scared.”

            “I’m not,” I lied.

            “Today is my first day at my new job.” Mama continued. “I’m not scared, I’m excited.”

            “Mama, I’m not scared.” I repeated.

            She wasn't convinced though as she examined my face which looked very similar to hers in features, but our colouring was different.

            Mama was full-blooded Mali with the typical smooth, dark brown skin, big brown eyes and short afro hair. Her eyes were her best feature as they were large and yet pointed in the corners which gave her a feline-like quality. Mama was 170 cm’s tall and skinny.

            I wasn’t as tall as Mama, I was at least ten centimetres shorter. I was 16 years old so I still had a couple of years left where I might reach her height. My hair was long and frizzy and my skin was a light brown colour. My paler skin came from my father since he was Caucasian French.

            My parents divorce had just been finalized.  Papa had moved back to France at the start of their separation and with its completion, Mama and I moved to Alaska.  It was thanks to her getting a job at the new hydro power plant which operated just outside of Alma.

            It was ‘fall’ as they called autumn here.  Mama and I were already wearing coats as we had to adjust to the colder climate. I had moved from arid conditions to almost arctic.

            I came from a climate where a ‘hot day’ could reach forty-five degrees Celsius; to a climate which could drop to minus forty-five degrees Celsius.  Alma had odd daylight hours being so close to the Arctic Circle.  In summer, I've heard that there are days where the sun doesn’t set until 11 PM and in the middle of winter, there are days when it doesn't rise until 11 AM.

            I didn’t want to come here. I didn’t want to leave Mali. I miss my Aunts and Uncles and I miss playing soccer with my cousins. I miss the warm weather and the warmth of my family.

            Alma has a population of around 7,500 and people here aren’t as friendly.  When Mama and I first moved into our small, two bedroom townhouse which was in a complex, we asked a neighbour for directions to the supermarket. The lady was snobby and only gave a short answer which wasn't helpful.  Now I'd be going to school with people like this and I've been dreading my first day.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“You’re just going to hop in your vehicle and drive me, a complete stranger, all the way to Anchorage?”

(Excerpt from Claimed)

Just then we were interrupted, when Steve carried over the empty beer jug to order another.

“Can I get another jug of Bud?” He asked the bartender. Simultaneously as I blanched at the idea they were drinking more; he looked over and noticed I wasn’t sitting alone. He fired up, “there you are! We were wondering where you got to.”

“I had to get an orange juice.” I spoke crisply. “My blood sugar was low.”

Flint’s eyes narrowed, “Jessica has been sitting here for the past ten minutes, she wouldn’t have been hard to spot from where you’re sitting.”

Steve’s eyes narrowed back, as he came over to put a possessive hand on my back.

“So you’re drinking orange juice with her?” He asked snidely. “Or is there vodka in yours and hers drinks?”

“I don’t drink alcohol,” Flint said warily, “and with Jessica being a diabetic, it wouldn’t be wise for her to drink either, until her blood sugar level has returned to normal.”

“Well thank you for baby-sitting her,” Steve said sarcastically, “but she’ll be coming back to sit with her friends again.”

“No,” I shrugged off his hand, “not unless.”

“Huh?” He uttered, as his breath reeked of beer.

“Not unless you stop drinking right now, and we all hop into the rental and drive to Anchorage!” I snapped.

“Jess, we have the tents! We can camp on the side of the road and get up at dawn, to finish the drive. Brian and I talked about it. You’re not gonna miss your flight.” Steve rolled his eyes, like I was the one being difficult.

My heart pounded as my eyes widened with fear that I could be stranded...

“I’ll drive you to Anchorage.” Flint said simply.

“What?” Both our heads snapped around in surprise.

“I’ll drive you to Anchorage, when you’ve eaten your burger.” He said calmly, as he held my gaze.

“What burger?” Steve tipsily looked around.

Perfectly timed, a hamburger with the lot and a side of fries, was carried out by a younger Native Alaskan man, wearing an apron.

He placed it on the counter before Flint, who slid the plate before me.

“Thanks Harry,” he patted the younger man, on the arm.

“No problem, Flint.” The youth smiled back, before he returned to the kitchen.

“Mmm yum!” Steve picked up a couple of fries, to jam into his mouth. “Good idea, Jess. I’m hungry!”

Flint didn’t like this and he stood up to tower over his opposition. With his height and width, he easily dwarfed Steve. He looked dangerously upon the male who was interfering.

“I bought the burger for Jessica, I didn’t buy it for you.” He almost growled out.

“Fine,” Steve drunkenly laughed, “if that’s the way it is, Jess is getting strange men to buy her burgers in bars? Then it’s fine with me! You can make your own way to Anchorage.”

“Wait!” I stood up frightened, as this situation went from bad to worse. “Steve, please just take me to Anchorage? Tonight? I’ll even get a separate hotel room, if you like. You can break up with me in Anchorage and we’ll never have to see each other again. Just take me to Anchorage?”

“Oh, now you want to be with me, huh? Burger boy doesn’t cut it?” He raised his voice. “Sure this guy is as big as a lumberjack, but I bet he’s not a Partner in one of Seattle’s top law firms! What’s his salary per year? One dollar per tree he cuts down?”

I thought I heard another growl come from Flint, as I tried to calm the situation down.

“C’mon Steve, it’s not like that! Flint was just being nice.” I said desperately. “He saw me shaking because of my low sugar level, and he bought me some food and drink. Please just take me to Anchorage tonight? Please?”

“Jess, I told you what our plans are tonight! Stop your nagging! Man, we’ve only dated for two months, and you’re already trying to tell me what to do?” He turned away, to pay for his jug of beer.

“The lady is frightened, especially when she’s unwell and she’s far from home. A real man would see to the woman’s safety first, especially the woman he supposedly has feelings for.” Flint spoke coldly.

“Oh is THAT what a real man would do?” Steve taunted. “I bet that you know a lot of ‘real’ men, all the way up north, cold and alone, huh burger boy?”

“Steve!” My face burned bright red. “Don’t be such an asshole!”

Now the bartender got involved, when he put down the new jug. However he moved it away again, after he heard the arguing. Indeed, the whole bar was watching.

“I think you’ve drunk enough, friend.” The bartender looked on warily.

“Excuse me?” Steve turned on him. “What kind of customer service do you call this?”

The older man looked from Flint to back to him, before he said calmly; “maybe you and your friends should leave.”

“I could sue you for this!” Steve said sulkily. “But you wouldn’t be worth the paper work.”

As he returned to the table to talk to Brian and Abi, I grabbed my handbag and prepared to go with him, in case they were driving to Anchorage now.

Flint calmly looked down into my face with his great height; “I’ll drive you to Anchorage Jessica, after you’ve eaten.”

That gave me pause, as I looked on his face which seemed open and kind.

“Why?” I wondered. “Are you going to Anchorage yourself?”

“I’ll drive you there and make sure you don’t miss your plane,” he said seriously.

“You’re just going to hop in your vehicle and drive me, a complete stranger, all the way to Anchorage?” I asked in disbelief.

“I think it’d be safer than if you remained with your friends, who’ve been drinking.” He said then he leaned in closer and when he did, I got a whiff of whatever aftershave he was wearing. Man, did this guy smell good! He spoke softly, “you have nothing to fear from me, Jessica Tandy. I will make sure you don’t come to harm.”

I don’t know if it was from how deep and gravely his voice sounded then, or his addictive aftershave, or even if it was just his handsome face? Maybe it was all of the above, but my strong attraction made me believe him.

In the corner of my eye, I noticed Abi and Brian get up from the booth, and she looked uncertain. Whereas Brian and Steven went over to the door, she walked over to where I was standing at the bar, to speak to me direct.

“Um, Jess? We’re leaving for Anchorage now. Are you coming?”

“Jessica has a ride to Anchorage,” Flint answered for me.

She looked over the tall stranger warily, before she leaned in to speak quietly; “look, I know Steve can be a bit loud when he’s drinking. But we are driving back to Anchorage tonight, for our flights tomorrow. I don’t think it’s a bright idea, to get a ride with a stranger you only just met in a bar, Jess.”

“You’re only driving to Anchorage now, because you’ve been kicked out of the bar, Abi.” I replied curtly, offended at how she just made me sound!

“Jessica can call her parents in Seattle, and give them my name, address and my number plate. If anything happens to her in Anchorage then they’ll know how to contact me.” Flint organized.

Abi looked on in distrust, “we’re out of range for our mobile phones.”

Instantly, he called on the bartender; “Charlie, can we use your phone?”

“Here we go Flint,” the bartender who I now knew as Charlie, immediately lifted it up from behind the bar.

Flint told him, “Jessica needs to call her parents in Seattle, to tell them I’ll be driving her to Anchorage.”

“It’s the safe thing to do, Miss.” Charlie gave me a nod. “I mean, I can speak for Flint, since he’s a good man? But if anything happens to you in Anchorage, at least your parents will know where you are.”

“Er, my parents are actually in Michigan, I live in Washington State.” My face flushed at their attention. “But I have a best friend I can call, in Seattle.”

“Go right ahead,” Charlie pushed the phone closer.

“Jess!” Abi looked guilty. “Just come with us, we’re leaving now.”

“I’ll get Jessica’s things from your RV, while she makes the calls.” Flint told her. “Then she’s going to eat her burger and afterwards, I’ll drive her to Anchorage.”

“I’ll speak to the guys and see if they can wait, while you eat.” She said annoyed.

Now SHE was getting annoyed at ME? That’s it, I’ve had it up to here!

“Oh, I’m so sorry for having low blood sugar that I need to eat instead of just drink beer. I’m sorry I couldn’t cook over an open fire, so I’ve practically been starving all week! Especially since everybody who’s been camping before, didn’t offer to help! I’m sorry my college education didn’t include putting up tents! I’m sorry I made such a fuss about using a tree for a f***ing bathroom, or I can’t bathe in a freezing cold river! I’m sorry I’ve been looking forward to a hotel room in Anchorage all week, where I can shower, sleep in a proper bed and order room service!” I vented.

“Fine!” She said indignantly. “But I’ve never met anyone that has complained as much as you do, Jess!”

“Of course I’ve complained!” I shouted back. “Diabetics get shitty when we’re cold, hungry and tired!”

Suddenly the whole Bar erupted into laughter, which included Flint and Charlie.

Abi’s face turned bright red, whereas Steve and Brian turned and left angry.

“I’d get shitty if I was cold, hungry and tired all week too,” one of the men at the counter, chuckled.

“And the showers! Don’t forget the showers,” one of the Native Alaskan men Flint had been playing pool with, laughed along.

“When our pulsating, massage, shower head broke, my wife was shitty for two weeks!” The Native Alaskan man with the short hair, guffawed.

Flint put his hand over mine, which felt warm and strong and even soothed somehow.

“You sit and eat whilst I get your things,” he ordered gently.

Unconsciously, I found myself doing what he said, as I returned to the stool. I watched him leave the bar with her, when I saw one of his friends, walk out after him. It was as if they were worried that MY friends were the dangerous ones!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Yeah, I do look like I’m trying too hard to belong in the Alaskan wilderness, don’t I?”

(Excerpt from Claimed)

The bathrooms weren’t as dirty as I had imagined, nor were they that clean. I placed my handbag on top of the sink and took out the small pack, I always had on me as per doctors orders. I pricked my finger, before eying the readouts of my sugar level, with dissatisfaction.

I really needed a hot meal. I really needed to shower and climb into a comfortable bed. I really couldn’t miss that flight tomorrow, at 10 AM. I really couldn’t miss my Monday morning meeting.

The more worried I felt, the worse my shaking grew… I felt like bursting into tears at the lousy time I was having! Back in Seattle, Steve had been a nice guy but with this camping trip, we both had seen a new side in each other. He had turned into a cold, obnoxious male and I had turned into a nagging, nervous wreck!

I’m NEVER going camping again! I hate Alaska! I want to go home to Washington State!

I packed away the diabetics kit into my handbag, before I walked back out. Instead of returning to the booth, I went and sat on a stool at the bar. I tried to sit patiently as I waited to be served, but my trembling went from bad to worse.

When I raised my hand to attract the attention of the bartender who was chatting to another patron, my hand shook uncontrollably!

“Charlie!” Suddenly, a loud voice boomed. I jumped in surprise, just as the bartender did. We both saw it was the handsome, older, Native Alaskan man, now standing beside me. “The lady needs a drink.”

The middle-aged, male bartender immediately came over, “what can I get for you today, Miss?”

“Um, can I please have an orange juice?” I managed out.

I had to hug my hands between my legs, to try to stop the shaking.

“And she needs to eat,” the handsome man added, whilst looking on my hands in my lap.

“What would you like?” The bartender pulled out a pen and pad.

“Um…” I tried to think, but I couldn’t clearly.

“Make it a burger with the lot,” the man spoke for me again, before he looked my way. “Is that OK? It practically has all of the five food groups, in one meal.”

“Hey, Harry? We need a burger with the lot!” The bartender called over his shoulder, to an open doorway where the kitchen must be.

To my further surprise, next the handsome stranger handed over a twenty dollar bill, to pay for me!

“No!” I cried out, a little loudly by accident. I scrambled for my purse, but the bartender took the man’s money and moved away. I tried to hold my purse steady, as I pulled out another twenty dollar note. “Here, take it.”

“You come from a city, don’t you?” The stranger smiled in amusement.

“What has that to do with it?”

“Here, when a person is shouted a meal and a drink, they simply say ‘thanks’.” He said evenly.

“But I don’t come from around here, so I won’t be able to pay you back.” I tried to point out.

He openly looked over my hiking boots, cargo shorts and water-proof jacket, all of which I had bought recently, for this camping trip from hell.

“Yeah, I guessed you weren’t from around here,” the man joked.

Self-consciously, I looked down at my appearance, before I looked back.

“Yeah, I do look like I’m trying too hard to belong in the Alaskan wilderness, don’t I?” I laughed nervously.

“Why try?” The man leaned on the bar. “Most people here, all come from somewhere else. Except my people of course, as we’ve always been here.”

“Yeah, I guess from your appearance I can see that too.” I laughed as did he.

“I’m Lokoti,” he said.

“Oh, hi Lokoti.” I offered him my hand to shake. “I’m Jessica Tandy.”

“No, my name’s not Lokoti, it’s the name of my people.” He chuckled, as we shook on it. “MY name is Flint Riverclaw.”

“Oh!” I blushed at my stupidity. “Sorry.”

The bartender put a tall glass of OJ before me, before he moved away to continue his conversation with the other patron.

I tried to keep my hands steady, as I took hold of the glass and raised it to my mouth. But my hands shook so badly, the man kindly put out his hand to help hold it. I felt my face burn in embarrassment, as I drank half the glass, before he lowered it.

“I’m sorry, I’m – I’m diabetic...” I continued to blush, “…my sugar levels are a little low at the moment.”

“Hmm, I smelled that.” Flint Riverclaw frowned in concern.

“You smelled that?” I echoed, thinking that it was an odd thing to say.

Then I watched him flash an angry look at the booth, where Steve was sitting. However, my boyfriend’s back was to us, as he was laughing away with Brian and Abi. The three didn’t appear to be feeling my absence.

“Your mate should be looking after you.” Flint said in disapproval, whilst glaring at Steve’s back.

“My who? My boyfriend? Well, I don’t think he’s going to be my boyfriend for much longer.” I glared into my glass.

“You are unmarried?” He looked on, in partial surprise. “I thought you were with the male who was over there, with his friends.”

“You mean my soon-to-be ‘ex’? No, we were never married. We only started dating two months ago. When he invited me up here, to go camping with he and his friends? I thought to myself, ‘well he knows I’m not the outdoors type, but he must be serious about this relationship if he wants me to go away with him’. But this has been the week from hell! He and his friends have done nothing but laugh at me, because I couldn’t put up a tent, I couldn’t start a fire, I couldn’t cook over the flames and I hate using trees as bathrooms!”

All of a sudden, all of my grievances came out in one rant!

“He didn’t help or provide for you?” Flint further frowned.

“Only when I burned the baked beans,” I said darkly then I started to rub my face from stress. “Now he’s drinking and when he starts, it’s hard to get him to stop. We’re supposed to overnight in Anchorage, for our flight back to Seattle tomorrow morning, but I’m scared we won’t make it.”

I wasn’t sure if I imagined it, but I thought I heard a growl? When I looked up sharply, I found Flint looking dangerously on Steve, for some reason.

“Er, so Flint, are you married?” I tried to move the conversation along.

“I have no mate,” he answered as he pushed my orange juice closer, to hint that I should have more. I smiled at his concern, as I picked it up and downed the last. Then he even ordered another for me. “Charlie, can I get two more orange juices?”

“Two OJ’s Flint?” The bartender acknowledged. “Coming right up!”

“Two more?” I echoed. “I’ll probably only drink one!”

“One of them is for me,” he chuckled again.

“You’re not going to have a beer?”

“I don’t drink alcohol,” he said simply, as he pulled another note from his wallet.

“No, let me!” I scrambled for my purse. But he ignored the note in my hand and so did the bartender, as he took Flint’s money instead. “What, is this a conspiracy? Don’t women pay for drinks in Alaska?”

Flint smiled at my humour, “so Jessica Tandy, what do you do in Seattle?”

He picked up one of the new drinks which were set down, as he waited to hear what I had to say.

“I’m a manager at a large PR firm, called ‘Wildenstein Dreams’.” I said proudly. “I was promoted at the beginning of the year. I’ve won a couple of awards for my event designs and now I earn 50k a year. What do you do, Flint?”

“I work in construction,” he advised.

“Really and how’s that going for you? Do you own your own construction company? How much do you pull in per annum?” I asked congenially.

“In my culture, it’s rude to ask how much a person earns.” He said casually.

“Oh.” I sat up straighter in surprise. Don’t tell me I just offended this nice man? “Sorry.”

“The only time you ask a Lokoti that question, is if you are the father of the woman you want to mate with.” He grinned in good humour.

“No shit,” my face fell, “erm, sorry Flint.”

“The father may not ask that question specifically, instead he’ll ask how the man can provide for the woman? Especially when the woman gives the man children. In that respect Jessica, I can tell you that I can provide for a mate should I take one.”

“Oh er, good for you.” I patted him on the arm, as I wondered what to say to that? But it made Flint laugh again.

“I like your blue eyes.” He openly stared at my face. “They stand out the most, with your white skin and blonde hair.”

“Do they?”

“Tell me about your life in Seattle, Jessica.” He sat down on the stool beside mine.

I laughed at the intense look on the handsome man’s face, as he came across as very mature. Flint may look like he’s 39 years old, but he reminded me of someone in their fifties or older, from his wizened look. He gave the impression of someone who’s ‘been there and done that’.

“Um, there’s not much to tell.” I tried not to blush again, at the interest he showed. “I wake up at 6 AM, buy a cappuccino on my way into the office, where I work from 8 – 6, Monday to Friday. Then I go home to my apartment which I’m paying off the mortgage, and to my cat named Fritz. He’s a Persian Blue and usually he’s the man of my life. I don’t like sport, I HATE camping…” here the two of us laughed, “…and I like to spend weekends with friends, by going to restaurants and seeing movies or shows.”

“Alma has a small cinema,” he offered.

“Alma?” I gave a funny look. “Where’s Alma?”

“This is Alma,” he chuckled at my vagueness.

“This town we’re in right now, this is Alma?”

“Uh huh,” he said patiently. “Alma has a cinema, this bar as well as a milk bar. It also has a school, which Lokoti kids attend, and a supermarket. On our tribal lands, we have a Meeting Hall where we put on dances, bingo, or family celebrations.”

“It sounds like you enjoy the quiet life, Flint.” I remarked.

“It sounds like you enjoy the fast life, Jessica.” He smiled back.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Just then, the handsome one looked right my way, as if he noticed my gaze.

(Excerpt from Claimed)

20th August 1999

We pulled up outside of a bar, in some kind of ‘one man and his dog’ town, a couple of miles off the main highway. As soon as the motor switched off, Brian, Abi and Steve were jumping out of the rented Jeep. I looked about this tiny town, in the middle of the Alaska Range, and therefore in the middle of nowhere; and I wasn’t as eager.

“C’mon, Jess.” Steve threw me a tired look. “It’s just a rest stop, it’s still a four hour drive to Anchorage.”

“You said we’d be staying in a hotel tonight, in Anchorage.” I whined, as I reluctantly climbed out.

“Gees Steve, you weren’t kidding when you said Jess was a city-dweller.” Brian laughed, as he took Abi’s hand, to lead her into the Bar.

Steve was embarrassed about having me as a girlfriend, I could tell. He didn’t take hold of my hand, nor did he hold the door open for me. Inwardly, I fumed as I went inside. I toyed with the idea of an immediate break-up, once I was safely back in Seattle.

He was the outdoorsy type, who typically played more than one sport; but I never pretended to be. I met him at a party and when we were introduced, I told him straight up how I’m a manager at a PR company, and I have a pretty impressive resume of events. I own my own apartment and a cat and a fridge, stocked full of frozen TV dinners.

So what if I can’t cook over an open fire? So what if I don’t know how to pitch a tent? So call me civilized, for having difficulty using the behind of a tree, as a bathroom!

We walked into the bar, to find a typical scene for an establishment in the middle of nowhere. Wooden floors which looked like they had never seen a can of polish; and a couple of chairs and tables as well as booths on one side of the room, with a long counter on the other. In the middle, sat burly types who could have been truckers or lumberjacks, for all I knew.

However, there was a pool table at the far end of the bar, which was being used by four Native Alaskan guys. They caught my eye, as I tried not to obviously stare at their long, black hair, broad shoulders, or their bodies which nicely filled out their jeans and flannel shirts. All four of them, had a pool stick in their hands, which implied that they were all playing. Three of them had long hair whereas the fourth, had cut his dark hair short.

One of them was taller than the others, as well as stronger looking. His hair was also the longest, all the way down to his lower back. Maybe I had never grown out of my rock band phase, but I thought he was the handsomest, although he did look older than me. I was 29 years old and this guy looked like he was 39 years old. I bet he was probably married at his age, oh well.

Just then, the handsome one looked right my way, as if he noticed my gaze. I tried to keep from blushing, as I joined my group in a booth along the wall. When we sat down, Steve immediately picked up a menu so he wouldn’t have to look at me.

“Hey, you wanna chip-in for a jug of beer?” Brian asked Steve.

“Sure,” he said congenially, to my horror.

“A JUG?!” I exclaimed. “You can’t just have one glass of beer each? Why does it have to be a jug? We’re driving!”

The men looked on in annoyance, and even Brian’s girlfriend Abi, looked unimpressed. So I tried to put my complaints in another light.

“I’m sorry, but the last time you two shared a jug of beer; it turned into two jugs and then three and even four. We ended up staying in a seedy, local motel for the night. Now you guys said we’d be sleeping in a nice hotel in Anchorage this evening. Our flights back to Seattle are 10 AM tomorrow morning! If I miss that flight, my work will kill me. I have an important meeting with some clients the day after next!”

“I don’t think this town has a motel.” Brian mused, whilst looking around the mediocre bar.

“We’ll just put up the tent,” Steve shrugged.

“Good idea. Why pay, when we have our own accommodations?” He laughed back then the two gave each other a ‘high five’.

“You’re kidding, right?” I laughed nervously.

They must be… you know, this is just a stunt to scare the ‘city gal’.

Just then a middle-aged woman who must have been the waitress, came over with a notepad and pen, to take our orders.

“Yeah, can we have a jug of Bud?” Steve ordered, before he looked at Abi.

“Yeah, I’ll go for the jug idea.” She shrugged.

“Any meals with those drinks?” Our waitress asked.

Just as I opened my mouth to order a cola and burger, Steve jumped in.

“Not yet, we’ll have the beer first and then see what we feel like later.”

The waitress shrugged and walked away to procure our order.

“Don’t I get to order, just like I don’t get a say on the trip?” I muttered quietly, but I knew Steve overheard.

He proceeded to ignore me, as he perused the menu again.

My legs jiggled nervously, as I tried to come up with a contingency plan.

The three of them, the two guys as Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dumb, with Abi as the ‘Little Miss I’ll-go-along-with-whatever-my-boyfriend-decides’; all started laughing over funny stories of the camping trip, we were coming back from. My eyes scanned the bar, especially the burly men I hoped were truckers and not lumberjacks. Maybe I could get a ride back to Anchorage with one of them?

I’d pay him cash of course, so he wouldn’t expect payment of some other kind. Then I’d make Abi write down the number plate of the truck I climbed into, for safety. If I didn’t make it to Anchorage and my body went missing somewhere in the Alaska Range, at least the police would have a starting point to find my murderer aka driver.

The waitress returned with a tray carrying four huge glasses, and the jug of beer. She put down the glasses first then the jug second, and quickly walked off before I could stop her. Damn it! I don’t want to drink beer, I want a cola! And I need to eat something…

My legs jiggled harder, as I noticed even my hands were trembling! I don’t think it was just from nerves, either. Drat it! I really need to eat something, plus I have to go into the bathroom to check my sugar level. I started counting backwards in my head, from the last time I ate, in conjunction with my insulin shot this morning.

“C’mon Jess,” my boyfriend poured some beer into my glass. “Have a drink! You’re a lot more fun, when you’ve got a couple under your belt.”

“Under her belt, or under something else?” Brian guffawed, with Steve laughing loudly along.

To stop myself going into a diabetes-induced rant at the losers, quickly I stood up and crossed the bar. My eyes scanned for the Ladies, as I struggled to keep my composure. I tried not to make eye-contact with the flannel-clad truckers or lumberjacks, who watched me leave my friends behind.

“Over there.”

What? I looked around for the person who just spoke. It was the tall, long-haired, strong-looking, Native Alaskan man. He was leaning on his pool stick, whilst watching me.

“Excuse me?” I blinked.

“Over there,” he pointed.

I turned to see where he was indicating, towards a door in the corner with a ‘Ladies’ symbol on it.

“Thanks,” I said in surprise at his perceptiveness.

Then I veered off in that direction, as my shaking got a hell of a lot worse.

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